Born from lament: The theology and politics of hope in Africa. Emmanuel Katongole. Grand Rapids,MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing, 2017. 294 pp.

It is acknowledged and well documented that Christianity is rapidly changing from being the religion of Europe and North America to a religion of South America, Africa, and Asia. Of the three regions, Africa is experiencing the fastest Christian growth. This paper examines one of the many Christian denominations and movements that are participating in that growth in Africa, namely Lutheranism. Reasons behind the steady expansion, challenges faced, and the implications of the rise of Lutheranism in Africa will be highlighted.     

Lutheran perspectives on interfaith relations: Theological trajectories of study processes in the Lutheran communion

The global Lutheran communion has been engaged in theological reflection on interreligious relations for several decades. In the 1960s, the Lutheran World Federation embarked on theologically reflecting on its relations to the Jewish people. This led to a critical assessment of Luther's writings on Jews. 1984, the LWF established a desk to engage theologically with religious pluralism. Starting off from a theology of religions' approach the engagement of the global communion has become more contextual, dialogical, and collaborative over the years. This has led to a dialogical public theology which affirms dialogue and theology as sisters in a critical‐constructive engagement with one's own and other communities. Raising epistemological and theological questions in dialogue in view of religious actors' public accountability can help to prevent faith from mutating into ideology or manifesting itself as idolatry.     

The Usefulness of the Lutheran Confessions in the African World

Abstract: The Malagasy Lutheran Church is one of the fastest growing churches in Africa. Maturing after having been seeded by Western missionaries, the confessional bond to Lutheran history is flowering differently within (1) the development of African contextual theologies and (2) ecumenical dynamics involving Lutherans and other Christian traditions.     

Theology in the Life of the Lutheran Church

Abstract : This article is intended as a brief introduction to the essays that occur in this issue of Dialog. Written for seminar discussion during the concluding consultation in the Lutheran World Federation five‐year study “Theology in the Life of the Church,” these papers were presented in Augsburg, Germany, in March 2009. Each article explores the connection between academic theological reflection and the practical needs of faith communities throughout the world, especially the global South.     

The Pastoral Challenge of the Environmental Crisis: Environmental Anxiety and Lutheran Eco‐Reformation

Plans for a Lutheran “eco‐reformation” are complicated by the polarization of views related to environmental issues. I argue that there is a special reason to take the agenda of eco‐reformation seriously: a widespread and often unconscious environmental anxiety, which posits a pastoral and existential challenge that must be addressed by the churches. I contextualize the challenge of eco‐reformation in the historical context of Lutheran eco‐theology. Finally, I briefly discuss two key themes for Lutheran eco‐theology: God's presence in nature and the theology of the cross.     

On the (Ir)Relevance of Lutheran Theology: Teaching Lutheran Theology in Tanzania

Abstract : The Lutheran interpretation of the gospel we have preached and taught in Tanzania finds little resonance. This may be due to our individualistic and guilt‐oriented, narrow reading of Luther. Luther's theology may again become relevant in Tanzania should it find local interpretations. Good news can indeed be glad tidings when the Word meets human need and anguish. The dominating questions of the human condition change between cultures, societies and times. Our context is not 16th century Wittenberg.     

Theology of the Cross and the Experience of God's Presence: A Lutheran Response to Pentecostal Wonderings

As Lutherans and Pentecostals begin an official international dialogue, the author, a Lutheran member of the dialogue, responds to two related sets of questions raised by a Pentecostal member of the dialogue during a preceding six‐year consultation between these traditions: whether there is a place in the Lutheran tradition for a “theology of glory,” considering the centrality of “a theology of the cross” for Luther; and how Lutherans speak about experiencing the presence of God, and the means through which one encounters God.     

Interpreting the Reformation in Africa: Transformative hermeneutics of Manas Bethulezi in light of 500 years of the Reformation

A cursory look at the various histories of religious renewal shows three interrelated aspects; there is an experience of injustice that is followed by the religious movement's new revitalization through the special encounter or reference to divine communication, and then an effort to reorganize the socio‐economic and political structures of society in light of the newly discovered religious vitality. This article observes in the phenomenology of religious renewal that cultural renewal and cultural distinctiveness tend to accompany religious renewal.     

Women as wives and rulers in Martin Luther's theology

This article offers a theological analysis of Martin Luther's complex view on women and their role in society, focusing on his exposition of the narratives of creation and fall in the Lectures on Genesis. Luther's understanding of women is defined by an ostensible paradox. On the one hand, Luther claims that all women are equal to men in relation to God and hold the power to rule over the earth, which they execute as leaders of the household. On the other hand, Luther passes on a traditional view of women being of a weaker nature and argues that wives have to subordinate to their husbands. I interpret this understanding of women as an outcome of Luther's theological anthropology based on his doctrine of justification. Men and women are equal as priests and kings in relation to God and authorized to manage their relationship with him, to teach and pray for others, and to disobey authority that interferes with this faith relation. As sinners, though, they must submit to authority to suppress sin. Both men and women exercise authority through their gender-specific callings in the earthly hierarchies, which constitute God's created order. However, women have to subordinate to their husbands in order to suppress sin. The article discusses whether this complex view on women promoted patriarchal social structures or whether the freedom and equality of the spiritual realm over time filtered through to the role of women in society, paving the way for their liberation.     

‘Born Sinners’ Striving for Perfection: Criteria for the Construction of a Contemporary Lutheran Theology of Original Sin

Abstract : This essay aims to identify some criteria Lutheran theology must meet when working towards a new construction of human imperfection. It must be contextual and open towards a dialogue with disciplines seeking knowledge of human nature. Theology must take evil and suffering seriously, while still recognizing humanity's ability to make life better. It must affirm that not only human nature, but also human culture needs transformation.     

“These Things Took Place as Examples for Us”: On the Theological and Ecumenical Significance of the Lutheran Sola Scriptura

The principle of sola Scriptura does not suggest a reading of the Bible in a room void of context, but points to the fact that the unity of church, canon, and confession defines the identity of the Christian church. The Lutheran Reformation was an attempt to retrieve this perspective at a time when it had become obscure. This retrieval corresponds to certain tendencies on the contemporary scene; it remains to be seen, however, how far convincing answers in this way can be provided for today's burning issues.     

Images of Suffering in Augustine and Luther

Abstract : This article examines how images of suffering are interpreted in Augustine and Luther, using their recommendations on meditations on the suffering Christ as a case study. Augustine and Luther are ambivalent about how such images mold religious experience. On the one hand, Augustine cautions that they can distort human affections, while Luther warns that they can deceive the mind. On the other hand, meditations on images of the suffering Christ can contribute to a Christian spiritual practice that builds faith.     

The meaning and legacy of the Reformation in a global perspective

When reviewing the non‐European perspectives of Lutheran theology presented in the contributions of this issue of Dialog, it is easy to recognize a dominant, unifying theme and a common task in a confrontation with the new Pentecostal churches. It then makes sense to refer to the two central themes and tasks of Lutheran theology mentioned in this volume: the development of a Lutheran pneumatology in contrast to the Pentecostal/charismatic movements; and an interpretation of the Lutheran doctrine of justification that concentrates on how the pure grace and love of God can be witnessed in good works. As a future focal point of Lutheran theology, the contributions from non‐European Lutheran Christianity presented here show that the connection between the theology of the cross as a central element of the grammar of Lutheran Christianity and the dialectics of law and gospel for the interpretation of the salutary efficacy and experienceable nature of the Spirit requires further reflection.     

Good government and the vocation of citizenship: A Lutheran perspective

Martin Luther considered governmental authority to be one of the structures through which God exercises providential care of the created world. Consequently, government and civil society are dimensions of life in which one lives out the divine calling to serve one's neighbors. This theological perspective offers a distinct contribution to discussions of the appropriate role of religion in the public square. God's desire for justice for all is the criterion by which to evaluate specific governments, policies, and officials. The goal of justice provides a common framework within which Christians can work for the common good with those of other faiths and no faith.     

The Blood of Jesus in revival theology and the contemporary Church with particular reference to the East African Revival and Roy Hession

One of the most common phrases heard in testimony, preaching, and song during the East African Revival (EAR) was the phrase ‘The Blood of Jesus Christ’. Taken from a rich biblical heritage, this phrase encapsulates a wide range of ideas concerning the work of the cross and the power of forgiveness in a believer's life. Whilst, as will be noted, the use of The Blood has been common to many revivals, this article examines especially the theology behind this phrase by looking at the most prominent of the EAR authors – Roy Hession. It investigates seven different applications of The Blood in a believer's life: The Blood as a testament that sin is forgiven, The Blood as cleansing the conscience, The Blood as victory over despair, The Blood as the remover of shame, The Blood as washing away sin, The Blood as the gateway of the Holy Spirit, and finally The Blood as the source of true fellowship. The theology of The Blood has a long history of use in the Church but it also comes with difficulties. To this end the article will investigate the legitimacy of the practice often found in Africa and some Pentecostal circles of invoking The Blood as protection against the demonic. The article closes by considering the reasons why speaking of The Blood in church can be uncomfortable yet is paradoxically of vital importance to revival.     

Using the Fictions of Ole Rølvaag and Arturo Islas to Reconsider Lutheran Identity in America

Lutheran Christianity needs a cultural medium just as the sacraments need physical elements. Yet, what happens when we become torn between cultural worlds, as immigrant bodies or migrant souls? Classroom wrestling with two novels, Ole Rølvaag's Giants in the Earth about Norwegian‐Americans and Arturo Islas's Migrant Souls about Mexican‐Americans discerns the dramatic tensions of living a hypenated existence.     

Doctrine of Scripture in Lutheran Theology—Its Missional Thrust: A Response to Lamin Sanneh's Hein‐Fry Lecture 20081

Abstract : In this article, I argue that Lutheran doctrine of Scripture is rooted in a christological centre, a centre that is coherent with Lamin Sanneh's thesis that the missionary experience must encompass both the work of the missionary who comes from ‘outside’ and, more especially, the reflections of the ‘indigenous’ peoples on Scripture in its witness to God's coming in Jesus Christ. This essential mutuality of ‘receiving’ and ‘giving’ in reading Scripture christologically undercuts imperial biblical hermeneutical practices that privilege certain cultures, languages, ethnic, racial, and class groupings as bearers of the gospel of Jesus Christ.     

The gift of the world: A note on political theology

This paper reads Carl Schmitt and the responses to Schmitt by his interlocutors and critics such as Erik Peterson, Jacob Taubes, Walter Benjamin and Jacques Derrida in order to argue that the concept of political theology cannot be exhausted in the sense of the term determined by Carl Schmitt. Taking up to analyse Schmitt's politico-theological appropriation of Søren Kierkegaard and reading Kierkegaard in the light of Jacob Taubes and Jacques Derrida anew, the paper hints at the possibility of reading Kierkegaard more radically than Schmittean reading. Such radical possibility of Kierkegaard for us would lie, not so much in the legitimisation of the profane order of the world-historical politics in the name of a theological foundation, but more radically in the delegitimation of any earthly sovereignty as such. Such radical possibility, passing through a deconstruction of sovereignty, must open itself to a new eschatology or a new messianic thought of justice that defers and differs the execution of judgement by any earthly power, opening thereby to the gift of the world in the spacing that separates the political from the theological.     

A constructive Christian theology for the pluralistic world: Author's introduction of the project and a response to reviewers

The author of the five-volume a Christian theology for the pluralistic world (Eerdmans, 2013–2017), Veli-Matti Kärkkäinen, introduces the nature, distinctive features, and methodology of the project and also responds to the reviewers whose reviews have been included in this issue.     

The Place of Earth in Lutheran Funeral Rites: Mapping the Current Terrain

Do funeral rites help Christians leave the earth or return to the earth? This article identifies the conceptual metaphors by which the funeral rites in Evangelical Lutheran Worship ¹ portray earth. All of the conceptual metaphors related to earth in the rites identified by this essay are at least compatible with an overarching image of journey, and most of the conceptual metaphors are directly structured by the journey image. While these conceptual metaphors can be understood as mapping a journey that seeks to abandon the earth for an otherworldly heaven, a number of tensions within the metaphors challenge this trajectory with an earthward goal of resting in the fruitful, living earth. The article concludes by briefly identifying some ecotheologically promising synergies between some of the biblical‐theological images and the emerging practices of conservation burial. ²